Mediation by Attorney Jason Dennis

Attorney Jason B. Dennis is now offering in-person and Zoom mediation services for a variety of matters.

Jason graduated from Indiana University (IU) Maurer School of Law in 2008. Although Jason’s current practice consists of a significant amount of municipal law, he also has a diverse civil litigation practice. During Jason’s career, he has developed legal experience in a variety of legal practice areas, from administrative law to zoning.

Jason has experience in construction cases, property disputes, family law, business disputes, personal injury, condominium/HOA law, etc.

Jason has completed an extensive (40-hour) mediation-specific training and certification program

As a mediator, Jason is prepared to work with parties to reach solutions to their legal claims and disputes, even if the solutions require creative and outside-of-the-box thinking. In fact, one possible benefit of mediation is that the parties have the ability to control their own destiny and even reach a resolution to their case or dispute that neither a judge nor a jury would have the legal ability or authority to provide.

What Does a Mediator Do?

A mediator is a person that is not involved in the case or dispute and also has no direct, personal interest in the merits or outcome (other than making all best efforts to help resolve the matter, of course). A mediator can help the parties identify issues, generate possible solutions, and, ultimately, arrive at their own final resolution. That said, mediators do not make any binding decisions for the people, businesses, or other entities involved in the case/dispute.

A Little More Information about Mediation

Mediation is a process that provides an opportunity for the parties to a case pending in Court (or to any other dispute) to explore issues, come up with their own ideas, and determine their own outcome to their case or dispute. In mediation, the possibility exists for the parties to design their own resolution that suits their situation even better than what a judge could order or a jury could decide.

Mediation typically takes place in one session, but it can also take place over multiple sessions. During mediation, the parties may all meet together or they may meet alone with the mediator (sometimes referred to as caucus or “shuttle diplomacy”). A combination of large group sessions and caucus meeting can be used in one mediation session. If parties are represented by lawyers, a mediator can also meet privately with the lawyers involved. Two important aspects of mediation are:

  1. Mediation is a confidential process that is also governed by rules that make much—if not all—of what is discussed during a mediation session confidential and inadmissible in Court. For example, a Plaintiff in a case where money is in dispute can’t tell a judge or jury how much money the Defendant offered to pay during mediation; and a Defendant can’t tell a judge or jury that a Plaintiff was willing to accept a smaller amount during mediation.
  2. Even though court rules often require mediation these days, the outcome is 100% voluntary, meaning that neither the mediator nor the other party can require a settlement to be reached at mediation.

What are the Typical Types/Styles of Mediation?

There are four typical mediation styles:

  1. FACILITATIVE MEDIATION:  This type of mediation might be considered the most “traditional” type of mediation. This is the type of mediation where the mediator facilitates a dialogue between the parties. The mediator might encourage the parties to reach their own voluntary solution by exploring each other’s goals and interests rather than expressing their own views and opinions or making recommendations. It may be that in facilitative mediation, any applicable law takes a back seat to the needs, wants, goals, and interests of the disputing parties. The mediator helps the parties design a result that works for them as opposed to what the law might say or what others might do in a similar situation.
  2. EVALUATIVE/DIRECTIVE MEDIATION:  This type of mediation is quite different than facilitative mediation. In an evaluative mediation session, the mediator will express his or her opinion about the strengths and weaknesses of each party’s position based on the applicable law and the facts made known to the mediator. The mediator might make express recommendations and suggestions to the parties. Unlike facilitative mediation, evaluative mediation has a significant focus on the legal merits of the case/dispute (including the facts and the application of the law to the facts). In an evaluative mediation, the parties and mediator work towards a settlement by openly evaluating the relative strengths and weaknesses of each side’s case.
  3. TRANSFORMATIVE MEDIATION: This a type of mediation where the mediator encourages the parties to recognize each other’s needs, goals, and interests and also provides an environment in which the parties are empowered to resolve their conflict. This type of mediation is similar to Facilitative Mediation, but the difference is that this type of mediation aims to transform the parties’ relationship by helping the parties recognize, acquire, and develop the skills they may need to make constructive changes and to be able to communicate and cooperate with one another more effectively going forward. This type of mediation may be most helpful to parties in a family law case, especially parents who are involved in custody and parenting disputes.
    This type of mediation can also be helpful in employment disputes, and other disputes where the parties may want or need to maintain some type of ongoing relationship. At times, in this type of mediation, the mediator is less concerned with whether parties reach an agreement, and is instead more focused on helping the parties transform their relationship.
  4. TRANSACTIONAL MEDIATION: This is the type of mediation that makes getting to an agreement the only goal. A more traditional negotiation style is used, and the mediator may act more as a settlement director. This may be the prototypical “shuttle diplomacy” situation. Of course, transactional mediation may require aspects of both facilitative mediation and evaluative mediation.

The above styles of mediation are not mutually exclusive. ADAPTIVE MEDIATION, which is the style of mediation Jason offers, is where a mediator uses more than one style within the same mediation session.

A Few Additional Facts about Jason:

To inquire about scheduling mediation with Jason, please call Hastings Law Office at (207) 935-2016.
You can also e-mail Jason directly at jdennis@hastings-law.com, and kindly put Mediation Request in the subject line.

Jason looks forward to helping you work towards resolution.